Patterson to compete at Nationals

Like father, like son. Cole Patterson, recent graduate of Skyline High School, will be competing this summer in the 2014 National High School Finals Rodeo (NHSFR) at Rock Springs WYO. The 66th annual rodeo will be held July 13-19.

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PrattTribune - Pratt, KS

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Posted Jun. 17, 2014 at 1:48 PM

Posted Jun. 17, 2014 at 1:48 PM

Pratt

Like father, like son. Cole Patterson, recent graduate of Skyline High School, will be competing this summer in the 2014 National High School Finals Rodeo (NHSFR) at Rock Springs WYO. The 66th annual rodeo will be held July 13-19.

Patterson is, of course, the son of nationally known world-champion steer roper Rocky Patterson of Pratt. When asked if that had any influence on his choosing to become involved in rodeo himself, Patterson answered, “Ever since I could walk, I’ve had a rope in my hands. Our whole family is involved with rodeo. I was just kind of born into it.”

Patterson has earned his way into the competition as part of the Kansas National High School Rodeo team by virtue of his performance during the Kansas high school rodeo association season. Only the top four performers throughout the season are eligible for the State’s “national” team. Patterson will be competing in calf roping and team roping.

Featuring more than 1,500 contestants from 42 States, Canada and Australia, the NHSFR is the world’s largest rodeo. In addition to competing for more than $200,000 in prizes, NHSFR contestants will also be competing for more than $350,000 in college scholarships and the chance to be named an NHSFR National Champion.

To earn this title, contestants must finish in the top 20— based on their combined times/scores in the first two rounds— to advance to Saturday evening’s final round. National champions will then be determined based on their three-round combined times/scores.

Again this year, the Saturday championship performance will be televised nationally as part of the Cinch High School Rodeo Tour telecast series on RFD-TV. Live broadcasts of each NHSFR performance will also air online at NHSRATV.com. Performance times are 7 p.m. on July 13, and 9 a.m. and 7 p.m. each day thereafter.

Along with great rodeo competition and the chance to meet new friends from around the world, NHSFR contestants have the opportunity to enjoy shooting sports, volleyball, contestant dances, family-oriented activities, church services sponsored by the Fellowship of Christian Cowboys, and shopping at the NHSFR tradeshow.

To follow Cole Patterson’s rodeo progress online, you can visit NHSRA.org daily for complete results. For ticket information, call (307) 352-6789. It remains to be seen whether Cole Patterson will follow in his father’s footsteps and become a champion rodeo performer, but he is looking forward to the effort.

“I’m very excited about getting to go to Nationals,” Patterson concluded. “But I have a lot of hard work to put in before then.”